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Rucker Archives
Journal Articles
1972 Oakland A’s: Junkyard Dogs
In his autobiography, Reggie Jackson said that the championship Oakland Athletics “were the meanest junkyard dogs who ever played the game.”1 He believed that Charlie Finley’s legendary cheapness, which confronted them at every turn, made them tough and hungry. “We were like a pickup team from the baseball ghetto and nobody wanted to come into […]
What is Baseball?
Baseball is for all, regardless of religion or race, And it’s the Babe blasting one into outer space. It’s the banker sitting next to the guy without a job, And it’s the base-stealing exploits of Tyrus R. Cobb. It’s the venders hawking scorecards, peanuts and ale, And it’s Landis, the Czar, with his chin on […]
A Surprising Disappointment: The Minnesota Twins of the Late 1960s
On October 14, 1965, the Minnesota Twins lost a heartbreaking World Series Game Seven to Sandy Koufax and the Los Angeles Dodgers, 2–0. While the disappointment was palpable, there was every reason to believe the Twins would soon be back in the Series. The team had won the pennant convincingly with a record of 102-60, […]
Baseball’s Misbegottens: Expansion Era Managers
In the 1970s, the very time when players and umpires gained wealth and power, baseball’s field managers’ status declined as they became wretched scapegoats to be sacrificed to the bloodlust of victory-starved fans. True, sacking the manager was a time-honored ploy; whenever rumblings of fan discontent erupted, a manager was bumped off as virgins in […]
Baseball and Briar
Psychologists have long known that perceptions impact the way humans interact with each other. Stereotypical beliefs are attempts to organize the world and classify individuals into neat, predictable groups. For example, there is a tendency to generalize college professors as liberals and construction workers as conservatives. Of course, these far- sweeping generalizations may or may […]
Joe DiMaggio’s Last Hurrah: The 1951 Lefty O’Doul All-Star Tour
From left to right: Takehiko Bessho, Eddie Lopat, Joe DiMaggio, and Tetsuharu Kawakami. (Rob Fitts Collection) In 1951 American troops still occupied Japan, but their mission had shifted. Rather than seeing the country as a former enemy to be subjugated, Japan was now viewed as an ally in the fight against communism. As the […]
Yankee Old-Timers Day: A Long-Running Tradition
The 2007 Old-Timers Day included Whitey Ford (16), Yogi Berra (8), Reggie Jackson (44), Don Mattingly (23), Ron Guidry (49), Moose Skowron (14), Don Larsen (18), Graig Nettles (9), Bobby Murcer (1), Goose Gossage (54), Paul O’Neill (21), Scott Brosius (18), Joe Pepitone (25), and Chris Chambliss (10). (Jerry Coli/Dreamstime) The original Yankee Stadium, […]